The roller coaster weather in the mid-Atlantic continues as the weeks of drought have been relieved with heavy rain and hot, humid conditions in many areas. Now let’s talk about having too much water! Turf under hot, wet conditions will deteriorate quickly. Waterlogged soils at or near field capacity leave roots unable to absorb water fast enough to meet transpirational needs. When this happens, the entire plant suffers and it can be lethal. These conditions can also lead to the onset of problematic pests. One way to combat these issues is through venting. Venting makes lots of small holes that break the surface and create channels for gas exchange. This is beneficial because it helps dry out the upper profile where the roots are most active and dense. When it is not hot and wet, venting will still create air channels and help water infiltrate the surface.
Tools for venting include small-diameter solid or needle tines, slicing knife tines, cross tines, star tines and micro tines. These are used at shallow depths on a tight spacing. While venting is usually performed on putting greens, larger tow-behind slicers can be used to vent fairways as well. On both greens and fairways, venting leaves minimal surface disruption. The more aggressive version of venting is using micro tines, which are small-diameter coring tines that leave tiny plugs that are easily blown off the surface.
Consider using a combination of venting tools based on what different areas need. Using micro tines on the wetter areas of a green and then using a different machine with needle tines to vent the remainder of the green is an option. If completion time is a concern, consider using a faster machine such as a spiker with star tines. If there is an opportunity for venting, use what you have, in the time you have.
Northeast Region Agronomists
Darin Bevard, senior director, Championship Agronomy – dbevard@usga.org
Elliott L. Dowling, regional director, East Region – edowling@usga.org
Brian Gietka, agronomist – bgietka@usga.org